How’s My Driving? - Safe Driving Blog Tips
Celebrating 30 years of How’s My Driving?, plus lessons, wins, and truths every fleet manager needs to know
2025 has been a wild ride for fleets.
From behaviour-change breakthroughs to regulatory headaches, from tech triumphs to talent retention challenges, it’s been a year that reminded us:you can have all the dashboards in the world, but people still make the difference.
Here’s our HMD take on the good, the bad, and the reality of fleet management as we close our 30th year.
The Good: Behaviour Change, Safety Culture & Smart Tech
This year, we saw fleets start to get serious about driver behaviour, not just compliance. Fleets integrating telematics, cameras, and AI-based monitoring discovered something important: data alone doesn’t change behaviour, but clear, timely feedback does.
When drivers get real-time insights, a gentle nudge for harsh braking, speeding, or distracted driving, and pair that with HMD-style feedback, culture shifts. Fleets who combined technology with recognition and coaching didn’t just reduce incidents; they saw improved morale, fuel efficiency, and fewer complaints.
Hot take: investing in driver engagement is the highest ROI move any fleet made in 2025. Forget flashy dashboards, support, clarity, and a little honesty go further than punishment.
The Bad: Compliance Headaches & Safety Stubbornness
2025 wasn’t without its challenges. Mandatory tachograph upgrades and drivers’ hours revisions rolled out in April, essential for cross-border compliance, but a pain for smaller operators scrambling to retrofit fleets. Paperwork, training, system integration, it all cost time, money, and patience.
On safety: provisional Department for Transport stats show1,579 fatalities in the year ending June 2025, a modest decline from 2024, but still far too high. Killed or seriously injured (KSI) numbers barely budged.
Hot take: rules and tech alone won’t move the needle. Culture, coaching, and real engagement with drivers remain the only sustainable way to improve safety.
The Reality: People Keep Your Wheels Turning
Here’s the blunt truth: systems, tech, and dashboards are important, but drivers, and the teams around them...they make or break your fleet.
2025 also saw the UK’s highest unemployment rate in years (around 5% in late 2025), while it might seem like an easy talent pool, retaining skilled drivers and fleet staff became critical. Losing an experienced operator costs far more than hiring a new one. Fleets that invested in training, mental health support, career development, and clear communication were the ones who stayed ahead.
Tech, telematics, and tracking tools are invaluable, but they work best when people buy in. Feedback loops like HMD’s service support behaviour change, helping managers coach effectively, track improvements, and reward safe driving.
The reality? No system replaces a motivated, engaged, supported driver.
Other Headlines Worth Noting
- - LGV & Light Commercial Vehicle strategy: Gov oversight and compliance guidance intensified in 2025. Fleets preparing for 2026 will need to be ready.
- - Driver wellbeing & retention: Investing in staff isn’t optional. Clear career paths, fair pay, and recognition have real operational impact.
- - Telematics evolution: Smarter systems, predictive maintenance, and behavioural dashboards are now table stakes, not luxuries.
Key Takeaways for 2026
- Invest in people first: Tech helps, but culture wins.
- Embed telematics in coaching: Turn data into action, not just reports.
- Prioritise safety metrics: KSI reduction is a KPI, not a nice-to-have.
- Retention beats recruitment: Reward, recognise, and develop your team.
- Continuous behaviour change: Feedback loops work best when consistent and supportive.
Final Word
2025 was a year that reminded us why How’s My Driving? exists: change comes from people, culture, and feedback, not just systems. Celebrate the wins, acknowledge the challenges, and get ready to drive forward in 2026 with clarity, focus, and humanity at the wheel.
12 December 2025